Water-meter.



J. M. BURTON.

WATER METER.

APPLICATION FILED 111.11.11', 1910.

PatentedAug. 22, 1911.

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J. M. BURTON.

WATER METER.

AYPLIGATION FILED 111111.11, 1910.

1,001,578. Patented Aug. 22, 1911.

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WATER METER.

APPLIoATIoN FILED 11113.11, 19-10.

1,001,578. Patented Aug. 22, 1911.

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itlNlttTE STATES PATENT Olttil.

JAMES DI. BURTON, OF LONG ISLAND CITY, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO NEPTUNEMETER COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEV JERSEY.

VATERVIETER.

i ,corses Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed March 11, 1910.

Patented Aug. 22, 1911.

Serial N0. 548,524.

lie it known that l, .laines M. lUnrroN, a. citizen of the UnitedStates, residing in Long island tlity, in the borough of Queens ot thecity of New York, in the State of New York, have invented certain newand useful improvements in Vater-li/Ieters, of which the ilollowing is aspecification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forminga part hereof.

rthis invention relates to the constri'lction of meters designedespecially for use where the ordinary [low for consumlition is to bemetered while an extraordinary tlow, as when lthe water is used for tirepurposes, is permitted automatically without metering and without lossof head. Such metering devices are provided ordinarily with multipleconduits, in one of which is placed the measuring device throllgh whichthe normal flow of water takes place, while the other conduit isnormally closed but opens automa tically to permit a free ttow of waterin ease of an extraordinary demand, as for tire service. itietcrs ofthis character have been criticised by water department otlicials because of the frequency with which, under practical comilitions ot' use,more or less [low through the tire service conduit takes place withoutany indication thereof, and by tire umlcrwriters because of thefrequency with which, also under practical conditions of use, theconduit for tire service becomes clogged or obstructed so that there isabnormal loss i of head, while in all of such devices, so far as known,there has been hitherto some loss of head due to certain features ofconstrue tion. Not only have devices of this charac ter, as heretoforeoffered to the publie, suffered from the :faults of construction abovealluded to by which therevis at best more or less diminution of headwhen the lire conduit is open, and by which there .is introduced anelement ot' uncertainty as to the indication of the opening of the tireservice conduit, but the construction has been highly complicated,involving many `ioints and a corresponding number of gaskets and bolts,and there has been formed invariably a dead end in which sand and otherforeign matter accumulates to such an extent as sometimes to obstructseriously the tire conduit when it should permit a free tlow, while theexistence of such dead end and therefore the eX istenee of a body ofstill water favors ac- (annulation and the lgrowth ol barnaclcs orsimilar snbaqucous growth, which always brings about a serious loss ofhead, while sometimes it prevents the proper opening ot the tire servicevalve.

l't is the object of this invent ion to produce a meter or meteringdevice of the character ret'errtal to which shall he tree from thedefects above alluded to, and especially shall be very compact andeasily capable ot embodiment in a single structure.tha t is,within asingle shell or casing, shall consist of a minimum number ot' partsavoiding a multiplicity of joints and a correslnnnling multiplicity ofgaskets and bolts, shall have no dead end for the accunmlation ot sandand other foreign matter. shall permit a straight and unobstructed flowwhen the lire valve is open without any loss ot head, and shall indicatewith certainty both the number ot openings of the [i re service valv`and the cx tent; of each opeiiing.

',l`he invention will be more fully explained hereinafter with'reference to the accompanying drawings in which it Yis illustrat'ed andin which- Figure l is a view partly in elevation and partly in verticalsection through the mecha.- nism chamber on thc plane indicated by theline 1*1 of lig. 2, loolt'ing in the direction of the arrows. VFig. l isa. view partly in clevation and partly broken out and in section on theplane indicated by the line fle-2 of `llig. 1. Fig. 3 is a detail viewin side elevation of parts of the mechanism shown in Fig. ll but on alarger scale. Fig. t is a detail view in elevation ot some of the partsshown in Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a detail view on a still larger scale of themeans for supporting and etiecting the movemci'it of the re cordingdrum. Figs. (3 and T are views in longitudinal section illustratingmoditications in the arrangement of the tire valve with respect to themetering dcvicc.

Referring first to the constrlaftion illustrated in ltigs. '1---5, itwill he seen that the shell or casing (l, which receives and supportsall ofthe working parts, is divided by a vertical partition a. to format one side thercoli a chamber u? in which are located the mechanicaldevices directly concerned with the movement of the tire valve and withthe rceording of such movement, thc connnirtmcnt on the other side ofthe partition a. being further divided by a, wall a. to form an inletcompartment at which communicates with the inlet a5, and an outletcompartment a which communicates with the outlet a7. In the verticalpart of the wall a3 and in line with the inlet L5 and the outlet al isformed a fire port as, the area of which is at least equal to the areain cross section of the inlet (1.5 and of the outlet a7, so that whenthe fire port is open there is no loss of head through restriction ofthe conduit through which the water then flows.

In the horizont-al parts of the wall c3 are located the register meterwheels, preferably turbine wheels and b rotated by the passage of thewater and mounted upon a vertical shaft b2 which is operativelyconnected at its upper end with the usual register mechanism b3. Thelatter may be mounted on the top of the shell or casing a and providedwith a removable cover bt, as usual. The fire port as being normallyclosed, all of the ordinary flow passes through the metering` device andthe volume thereof is registered as usual by the register 3.

It. will be observed that there is in advance of the fire port as nodead end or chamber in which sand or other foreign matter may accumulate-or in which the water may remain quiet so as to favor corrosion orsubaqueous growth. The fire port, moreover, is elevated above the bottomof the shell or casing a., so that such foreign matter as may be broughtinto the shell or casing immediately drops below the line of thefireport as and across the face of the nary flow through the meteringdevices there is a constant movement of water across the fireport as andacross the face of the valve, which closes it, so that there is nopossibility of clogging or restricting the fire port throughaccumulation -of foreign matter or attachment of forms of subaqueousgrowth. All such foreign matter as may be introduced into the shell orcasing falls, as stated, into the lower part of the shell or casing,where it is out of the way and cannot in any manner interfere with thefree iow of water through the fire port.

The ireport as is closed normally by a valve c, which is preferablyswiveled, as at c, upon its supporting arm c2, so that it shall seatitself tightly against the edge of the port as when it closes. Thesupporting arm c2 is fixed upon a shaft c3 which is mounted in suitablebearings and within the compartment a2 is provided with an arm c4 whichcarries at its extremity a roller c5. Also pivotally mounted in thecompartment a is a cam arm or lever Z having on its underside a shortdwell d which is at right angles to the initial line of movement of theroller 05, with which it cooperates, and a long curved cam surface Z2with which the roller c5 cooperates after its movement has started.

ln the free end of the arm Z is a sheave d'". A chain c, having one endsecured to a iixed point, as at e, passes over the sheave 1.73 on theend of the arm (Z, thence under a sheave cf mounted on a fixed axispreferably below the line of the lower edge or limb of the fire port as,and thence over a sheave c3 mounted. on a fixed axis preferably abovethe line of the upper edge or limb of the nre port as, the chain havingattached at its free end a weight c4. lt will be observed that when thevalve c is in its closed position, an shown by full lines in l*l ig. 3,the weight e* acts through the chain c and the lever arm (Z with itsmaximum power to hold the valve closed, the short dwell c/ on theunderside of the cam arm or lever (Z then resting upon the roller 05just above its center. lt will also be seen that just as soon as thevalve c has opened slightly, under an increased pressure dierentialbrought about by a greater demand on the outlet (il, the roller passesbeyo-nd the point which separates the dwell CZ from the curved orinclined cam surface (Z2, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 8, so thatt-he effective resistance offered by t-he weight c4 to the continuedmovement of the valve c is greatly reduced. Therefore, the weight itselfbeing selected with reference to the initial pressure differential whichis required to open the fire valve, the valve will be held securelyclosed until such pressure differential is developed and will then openquickly and freely.

Recording devices are provided whereby a record is made each time thatthe fire valve opens and the extent of each opening is also recorded.rlhe recording mechanism will now be described. @n the shaft c, in thecompartment Ca2, is mounted a double cam f, consisting of a` flangesecured to the shaft through the medium of a web f and a hub f2, theouter surface f3 of the flange having a cam formation while the edge orend f4 also has a cam formation.

The cam f3 cooperates with a cam lever g which carries at its .free enda pawl g. The weight of the pawl g sufficiently overbalances the levery] so that its lower end always presses against the cam f3 and so thatthe pawl end swings back after it has been swung forward and released.rlhe pawl g engages a ratchet wheel 7L which is mounted for rotation ona stud z' mounted in the wall a. The ratchet wheel 7L has fixed thereinstuds 7L', the outer ends of which are held in proper relative positionby a plate 7a2. @n the studs h is mounted a recording drum z" which isadapted to move freely, in a longitudinal direction, on the studs t, andis threaded. internally to engage the threaded portion 2 of the stud z'.By this means, as will be understood, the recording drum z" is rotatedand at the same time receives a slow longitudinal movement. ',lhe edgecam cooperates with a spring pressed lever /e which carries at its upperend, a stylus /u, adapted to cooperate with the drum fr or with therecord sheet tenuiorarily secured thereto.

.its will be imderstood, the longitudinal displacement, with respect tothe axis of the drum fi, of the mark made by the stylus /e correspondsto the extent of movement of Athe cam j and therefore to the degree ofopening of the lire valve The drum itself receives both a rotary and alongitudinal movement at each opening of the lire valve, so that a freshsurface is presented to the stylus at each opening. Therefore, the drum,which will be readily observable through the top of the casing a, whenthe cover plate is removed, shows instantly and positively both thenumber of times the fire valve has opened since the last inspection andthe extent of each opening.

1t will be understood, of course, that various changes in details ofconstruction and arrangement, not only with regard to the recordingn'iechanism, but with regard to other features of the invention might bemade to meet the refpiirements of dillerent conditions of use withoutdeparting from the spirit of the invention. Figs. ti and 7 of thedrawings, illustrate, for example, changes which may be made in therelative arrangement of the lire valve, meteringl device, the mainconduit in which is located the tire valve and the ley-pass conduit inwhich is located the metering device. In each of these figures the shella is shown as of a shape suited to the internal arrangements. 1n bothfigures the lire valve c is shown as in line between the inlet af andthe outlet al and as having an area equal to that of the inlet or of theoutlet. It is also shown as located in a vertical part of the wall a3and at some distance above the bottom of the shell c so that there isformed on each side of the tire valve a pocket to receive whatever sandor other foreign matter may be brought int-o the shell, Withoutpermitting it in any manner to interfere with the opening of the tirevalve. ln both figures, as will also be seen, the face of the lire valveand the vertical Wall in which it is located is constantly washed by theintlowing water and there is no dead end in which the water is permittedto rest, to favor either the accumulation of foreign matter or theformation of subaqiiieoi'is growths or corrosion of the metal. 1n Fig. Gthe fire valve is shown as nearer the outlet al While the meteringdevice is shown as adapted to receive water from below through the maininlet chamber a. and from above through a conduit am and to dischargethe same through a con duit all and the outlet chamber am. In Fig. 7 themetering device Z is shown as adapted to receive the water through aconduit al and to discharge the same above and below into the outletchamber au. 1n both eases, as well as in the construction shown in Fig.fl, the face of the tire valve and the vertical wall in which it islocated is constantly washed by the water which llows from t-he inlet tothe metering device. Various other changes will readily suggestthemselves.

Se far as the construction shown and dei scribed herein is capable ofbeing claimed only as a llow recorder as distinct trom a meter, inaccordance with the lat'ent Ollice classitication of subject matter ofinvention, no claim therefor is made herein, but the right to malteclaims therefor in a separate application is reserved to thi applicant.

l claim as my invention:

l. The combination of a shell or casing, a vertical wall dividingl theinterior of the shell or casing into an inlet chamber and an outletchamber and having a port therein, a pivoted valve normally closing theport and adapted to be opened by an .increase in thc pressureditl'crential, a by-pass conduit around the valve, a metering device insaid conduit, recording mechanism and means whereby the recordingmechanism is operated by the movement of the valve.

2. 'lhe combination of a shell or easing, a wall dividing the interiorof the shelter easing into an inlet chamlnr and an outlet chamber andhaving a port therein, a valve normally closing the port and adapted tobe opened by an increase in the pressure dill'erential, a by-passconduit around the valve, a metering device in said conduit, rescoi-ding meehanisni and means \\'hereby the recording mechanism isoliierated by the movement of the valve, such recordingmechanismcomprising means whereby each open ing of the valve is recorded andmeans whereby the extent of each opening of the valve is recorded.

25. A water meter comprising a plurality of conduits, a pivoted valvenormally closing the main conduit and adapted to be opened by anincrease in the pressure dil- 'terential, a metering device located inthe other conduit and recording mechanism operated by the opening of thevalve in the main conduit, such recl'n'ding .mechanism comprising meansVwhereby each (mening olf the valve is rccortfled and means whereby theextent of each opening of the valve is recorded.

et. A water meter comprising a shell or easing, a wall dividing theinterior of the shell 'or casing into an inlet chamber and an outletchamber and having a Aport therein, a valve normally closing said portand adapted to be opened by an increase in the pressure ditlferential, ashaft supporting said valve, bearings for the shat't, a cam carried bysaid shaft, a support for a recording sur face, a stylus and meansoperated by said cam to shift the stylus to an extent corresponding tothe extent of movement of the valve.

5. A water meter comprising a shell or casing, a wall dividing theinterior of the shell or casing into an inlet chamber and an outletchamber and having a port therein, a valve normally closing said portand adapted to be opened by an increase in the pressure differential, asupport for a movable recording surface, a movable stylus to cooperatetherewith, means operated by the opening of the valve to shift therecording surface and means operated by the opening of the valve toshift the stylus.

6. A water meter comprising a shell or casing, a .wall dividing theinterior of the shell or casing into an inlet chamber and an outletchamber and having a po-rt therein, a valve normally closing said portand adapted to be opened by an increase in the pressure differential, ashaft supporting said valve, a support for a movable recording surface,a movable stylus, a cam on said shaft and connections whereby therecording surface is moved at each opening of the valve and a second camon said shaftand connections whereby the stylus is shiftedA at eachopening of the valve to an eX- tent corresponding to the extent ofopening of the valve.

7. The combination of a valve, a shaft supporting the valve, a recordingdrum, a ratchet wheel, means operatively connecting the same with thedrum, a pawl lever, a cam on said shaft for operating said pawl lever, astylus, a lever carrying the same, and a second cam on said shaft foroperating the stylus lever.

8. The combination of a valve, a shaft supporting the same, a screwthreaded stud, a recording drum mounted on said stud to rotate and tomove longitudinally thereon, a ratchet wheel mounted loosely on saidstud and means operatively connecting the same with the recording drumto rotate the same and to permit longitudinal movement thereof, a pawllever to cooperate with said ratchet Wheel and a cam on said shaft tooperate said pawl lever.

9. rfhe combination of a valve, a shaft supporting the same, a screwthreaded stud, a recording` drum mounted on said stud to rotate and tomove longitudinally thereon, a ratchet wheel mounted loosely on saidstud and connected with the recording drum to rotate the same and topermit longitudinal movement thereof, a ratchet lever, to cooperate.with said ratchet wheel, a cam on said shaft to operate said ratchetlever, a stylus, a lever carrying the same, and a second cam on saidshaft to operate the stylus lever.

rIhis specification signed and witnessed this 10th day of March, A. D.,1910. y

JAMES M. BURTON.

Signed in the presence of- ELLA J. KRUGER, AMBnosE L. OSHEA.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. C.

